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Message: <blockquote data-quote="Chaosmancer" data-source="post: 8130164" data-attributes="member: 6801228">On a single subject matter? To get only a basic, level understanding of the material? Or are you talking about studying a wide range of subjects, with multiple instructors presented a variety of opinions, and pushing you into more and more specialized areas of study? Missing the point. I was focused on the noble's perception, connecting that sentence to the ideas that followed.Sure, go ahead and tell every other noble family that your scion is too stupid to understand the intricate workings of magic, and that he would rather spend his time in leisurely pursuits. I'm sure that will have no political implications for your house at all. And sure, magic isn't the only route to prestige, but it is more powerful and shows a mastery of not only knowledge but of the world. So, it is the path with the most prestige. For what shows your right to rule more than ruling the very fabric of existence?Except for how common and easy the rules show magic to be. Which is a lot. ----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------I have tried it. I typically have a half an hour, I am typically the second or third teacher to try and explain this particular concept to them, with no knowledge of how they were taught any of the previous building blocks and how I might use that scaffolding to show them how to reach the next step. And I'm usually splitting my attention between ten and twenty students.And yes, sometimes, with those limitations, I can't explain a concept to someone. And sometimes, actually fairly often, I've been told "That makes so much more sense than how the math teacher explained it to me." But, I want you to try and picture a different school system for a moment Paul. You don't get the student for a single 45 minute period, having met them after they were taught by a dozen other teachers before you. Instead, you are the teacher teaching them every concept of math, from beginning to end for a decade. You don't have to wonder if they were taught a concept poorly, or are using a bad method to solve the problems, because you taught them those things too. You don't have to wonder if they can handle this new subject, because you have been an integral part of their education for their entire life, and you know exactly how they think and where they will struggle, because you've guided them around those struggles for years. Excepting for Dyscalculia, are you honestly going to tell me that you would find teaching calculus to a single student after being their only dedicated, year round teacher since they learned what the number 1 is would not be radically easier than our current system of public education? ----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------I can agree with most of your reasoning, I just want to focus on that bolded bit. Minigiant and I started this discussion with him putting forth the idea that the rare-wizard setting is the norm, per the rules. I propose that the current edition of DnD does not follow that model. Magic is not rare in 5e. It is not this field of study so far above mortal understanding that we are using Quantum Physics and String Theory as the starting point for the simplest aspects of it. The most of the settings we have were created when the former style was true and the latter was not, but I think that should be changing if we go with the assumptions of this edition of DnD. Because the latter holds more true to what is presented to us in the books than the former. If you want rare-magic, you can do it, but you have to work for it. If you want more common magic, you don't have to really change a thing, the rules provide you with plenty to work with. -----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------And that is a poor reason to build a setting on. People who want to be the one and only special person who can do X are bad for any setting with grounding in logic. --------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------I get that to a degree but I am reminded of a video I recently saw on the value of soft-magic in the LoTR. The author pointed out that the soft magic of the ring's corruption and how it worked fit the thematic overlay of PTSD and how a man returning from World War One felt about his return to his normal life. It works because it is symbolic. DnD magic doesn't work like that. You can't cast a spell that "slowly corrupts the heart and mind". We need to define it, we need to explain how it works, otherwise it is purely a roleplaying exercise. Which is great for plot points, but not for the magic players and DMs use to interact with the world. DnD magic, by the nature of being part of the game, is inherently more suited for hard magic systems and being used as technology. I fully understand and appreciate the desire for it to be a softer magic, with more symbolism, but again, that requires more work than simply letting the system exist as it is.</blockquote>

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